Introducing the Vitamix Explorian E310 Blender

Introducing the Vitamix Explorian E310 Blender. What Makes It The Best Blender? Blenders are an excellent way to change your lifestyle, eat healthier, and even lose a lot of weight. But at what cost does it take to have a premium kitchen appliance that is capable of making vegetables and fruits as tasty and palatable as possible? When I first saw a Vitamix demo at Costco, I knew I wanted one then and there. But the price just wasn’t in my budget.

I went online and discovered there was another competing brand called Blendtec (K-Tec at the time) and it was under $300. It fit my budget better than the Vitamix, so I bought it online, sight unseen. It took me many years later to buy a Vitamix when my budget was considerably more substantial.

But that’s all about to change….

High-Performance blenders, such as the ones Vitamix sells, are capable of turning your fruits and vegetables into the most delicious smoothies and soups around. If you’ve ever tried to make soup with one of those home-grade blenders, you’ll probably end up as I did with a melted drive shaft (and that was an expensive, all metal, $150 mixer). Or a frozen smoothie, that is full of bits and chunks of frozen fruit. With an unappealing lumpy texture.

Vitamix Explorian Series E310 Blender

Successful smoothie restaurants such as Jamba Juice are proof that the right commercial-grade blender can make all the difference in turning fruits and vegetables into a delicious smoothie.

Who Should Buy A High-Performance Blender?

The ideal person for a commercial-grade blender is one that is serious about changing their diet, lifestyle, or health. There’s not a comparison to “try” this out at home with an affordable $50 blender expecting to get the same quality of smoothie you can get at a Jamba Juice.

Who Shouldn’t Buy A High-Performance Blender?

These kinds of blenders are an investment that could last a lifetime. But they could become yet another kitchen appliance stuck in the back of a bottom kitchen cabinet. If you’re not sure you’re committed to making your smoothies at home, you should consider the alternative of buying them at a smoothie restaurant that uses a commercial-grade blender by Vitamix or Blendtec.

Restaurants such as these are great options to see if the “smoothie lifestyle” is for you:

Jamba Juice

Smoothie King

Robek’s

Tropical Smoothie Café

Give a local smoothie restaurant a try, a couple of times a week for lunch or dinner and see if this is for you before the investment in a blender for your home.

Things To Consider

Here are some of the everyday things to consider before making that investment into your blender:

LOCATION:

E310 comparison next to 5200 Standard C-Series

Where will you plan to put it on your countertop? I recommend that these kinds of mixers be left out on your countertop when not in use. They aren’t some light-weight thing you can quickly pull in and out of a cabinet. And anyway, aren’t you trying to change your diet? Keep it convenient and find a permanent home on your countertop.

BLENDER HEIGHT:

It’s most common to store the container on top of the blender base. So consider the total height of the blender + container in determining if it will fit under your upper kitchen cabinets.

POWER:

2 HP is the minimum. And be wary, these numbers are easy to define in different terms. But in general, 2 HP should be considered the minimum to getting professional type smoothie results.

WARRANTY:

Does the manufacturer stand behind there product and offer a 30-day warranty or a 5-year warranty? As with anything you buy, the longer the guarantee usually means the product uses higher quality components such as bearings, motors, mounts, gaskets, knobs, etc. Manufacturers have smart accountants, and they do the hard math with their engineers to figure out how long most products will run without needing a repair under warranty.

RETURN POLICY:

Does the manufacturer offer a 30-day trial? It’s tough to see if this blender will work for you when you can’t try it out before you buy it. And watching a professional demo, it isn’t’ the same thing as you trying to do it yourself at home in your kitchen?

EASE OF CLEANING:

It may sound like a straightforward thing to downplay, but believe me, it is probably the biggest reason why people stop using a kitchen appliance. I have several doo-dads and kitchen gadgets I’ve bought over the years, such as the motorized garlic peeler. Yes, it is super fast! But when you combine the time of peeling + cleaning the garlic peeler, it takes me longer to use the motorized tool. So most times, I just skip it and do it manually with a cutting board and a knife. Same goes for a blender; if it’s difficult to clean or takes a while to clean, you probably won’t use it as often as you’d like.

CONTROLS:

This topic is an entire article unto itself. The list is long, including Programs, Pulse, Variable Speed, High Setting, etc.

LOUDNESS:

These are industrial grade blenders, with considerable motors in them. And they can blend powerful ingredients like frozen berries, ice cubes, etc. So sound should be considered.

The Perfect Entry Level Blender

Vitamix has historically used their line of Certified Refurbished blenders to hit a lower price point. But they have a great new solution that fills the need for a better-priced mixer without skimping on quality or performance.

Introducing the brand new Vitamix Explorian E310 Blender!

Vitamix was busy in 2017 with the launch of two new product lines, the Vitamix Ascent Series and the Vitamix Explorian Series. With the Vitamix Ascent, they went upscale and brought on incredible features never before seen on a blender (such as their Self-Detect Technology and Full-Size / Personal-Size containers). In October of 2017, Vitamix released the Explorian Series, and the first mixer in that series is the E310.

The E310 hits that sweet spot of an entry-level price, with all the features and capabilities of their older Series such as the 5200 Classic-Series.

Vitamix Explorian E310 blender right side view

Pros:

Price – It’s the lowest priced new Vitamix you can buy today

Warranty – It comes with a five yr warranty, that is upgradeable to 8 years

Performance – It has the power to deliver results like any of the other blender lines. Don’t let the low price fool you.

Simplicity – It’s like an iPhone, you can use it mainly without reading the instruction manual. There’s an on/off switch, variable speed from 1 – 10, and a pulse button. It’ll take all of 30 seconds to become an expert.

Recipe Book – It comes with a hard covered recipe book that has recipes for smoothies, hot soup, nut butter, homemade baby food, etc, etc, etc.

Cons:

Programs – It only has manual controls, so it can’t do set-and-forget blending.

Sound – It isn’t as quiet as the newer Ascent blenders.

Who Should Buy The E310?

The Vitamix E310 is perfect for those shopping for their first high-performance blender. It can also be an excellent upgrade for those needing to replace an older Classic Series blender such as the Vitamix 5200. The controls and power are very similar, so the switch to the E310 will be easy.

It is also the best blender for someone on a budget.

It doesn’t have all the features and capabilities of the Vitamix Ascent line, but for many, an on/off switch and variable speed controls are all they need. And for many chefs, they still train on the legendary 5200 that has inherent powers.

Who Shouldn’t Buy The E310?

The Explorian E310 isn’t for everybody. The container is only 48 oz, and it’s a narrow body format. Many longtime blender cooks are accustomed to the more substantial 64 oz containers. For most people though, a 48 oz container is large enough.

The E310 only supports the use of a full-size container. It can use Vitamix’s personal sized containers with an add-on called a “personal cup adapter” sold separately.

If you’re used to a blender with Programs, the E310 may not be the right blender for you either. Programs are fantastic and a significant convenience that allows for the set and forgets type of blending.

Key Features:

Price, Price, Price. OK, it’s not necessarily a product feature, but the price is what the Explorian and specifically the E310 is all about! There’s no other blender on the market today that balances cost and value better than the E310.

Vitamix Explorian E310 blender left side view

Vitamix E310 Performance

The performance of the E310 is similar to the Vitamix 5200. It uses the same or very similar 2.0 HP motor.

The critical point here is, even though it is the best priced Vitamix on the market today, it still can deliver all the same recipe results for:

Body

The Explorian introduces a new body design. It’s still remarkably similar to the older shapes used in the C-Series and G-Series, with some slight visual design changes. From what we can tell, they’re cosmetic and not functional differences. It’s an attractive body design. The switches and knobs are made of high quality.

Motor

The motor is the proven 2.0 HP variety used by Vitamix. In a nutshell, the 2.0 HP motor for the 48 oz container and any container using the 3” blade is a perfect match for power and performance.

Container

It fits today’s lifestyle more. It’s great for one serving or two. And that’s what is made most of the time when we talk about smoothies.

It also can use any of the C-Class containers, so you can purchase separately one of the larger 64 oz containers if you find you need it.

Cleaning

The blender supports self-cleaning. Put a half container of warm water with a couple of drops of dish soap in it, put the lid on and press Start/Stop. Then slowly raise the variable speed from 1 to 10. Run for 30-60 seconds.

Rotate knob from 10 back to 1. Press Start/Stop. Empty the water from the container. Rinse the container and lid with fresh water. Presto, the blender is clean.

Final Thoughts on the Vitamix Explorian E310 Blender

The Vitamix Explorian E310 Blender is the perfect blender for those that are buying their first high-performance blender, or those replacing an aging Classic-Series such as the 5200. Vitamix finally answered the market demand for a Vitamix mixer that has a lower height and smaller container.

The E310 controls are straightforward, making it easy for a beginner to master the blending on an E310 very quickly. The Explorian E310 solves the #1 biggest complaint that a Vitamix costs more than $500. The price point is in the $300 range. And that’s for a brand new, never been used model.

I hope you found this article helpful and as always I look forward to your comments, questions and the sharing of ideas.

Note: Thank-you for supporting this website through the purchases you make on the provided affiliate links.

I love blenders because I can use them to make smoothies or fresh juice for everybody at home especially my kids. I’ll definitely check out the Vitamix Blender when we visit the mall soon. Might as well upgrade what we have.

Being healthy doesn’t mean that we should deprive ourselves of the delicious drinks. What grabs my attention most was the knowledge that this product could turn ordinary fruits into extraordinary smoothies. I would love to take a look at this blender myself.

The blender is absolutely great. I have landed in your article just in time because from the start of this year I have made a decision to lose weight so for that I have decided to add smoothie and health shakes to my diet. I have never used a blender before and your article has helped me a lot. I think it will be worth the price. Thanks for sharing this.

This blender is nice. I just need one for my uncle because he needs to eat food in smoothie due to his recent throat operation. He has his NGT removed but he said it’s still a bit painful so preparing his meals and blending it using this blender will be helpful. I like the fact that it’s not as bulky as others.

I don’t mind the noise of the Vitamix E310 blender. The price is affordable; worth it. The 5-year warranty will surely make any serious blender purchaser go for it. I recommend this product. Thank you for your wonderful review.

Because I am seriously thinking about changing lifestyle and diet, I need a blender for making some healthy shake. This high performance blender seems to fit the one I have in my mind. Your comprehensive review has helped me consider buying this.